Things still to be done:

• clean up cri floors 1, 2, 3
• clean up woodward floors 1, 2, 3, 4

• export data sets to shapefiles for kirk
• upload shapefiles to a database using PostGIS and PostGreSQL
  

Data Cleanup

Today I focused mainly on trying to clean up the data that I have been creating.

There are several error and anomalies are in the datasets that I created. These include rogue polygons that were copied over from the CAD files that are no use to use, and also other irrelevant features. Some other things that need fixing are: a complete account and database entries for each and every polygon sorted correctly. This process will involve making sure room numbers and other relevant information is present in the datasets for both Woodward Hall and Cameron Research Center.

Once this process is complete I will feel comfortable exporting this data to a more permanent database using PostGIS.

Screenshots

Here are some screen shots relevant to the project, some I have posted before but this will put everything in one place:

Finished Network Datasets

I have finally completed the process of annotating the network datasets with room numbers. I have sent this information to Jianfei and hopefully he will be able to start graph creation on his end.

The next thing that I am going to start working on is connecting these graphs to existing road networks and then when I am finished with that I will begin the process of making network datasets for Cameron Research Center.

Codes to remember

In order to store attribute data for the network dataset nodes, I have decided to use codes in the database to differentiate each point from another. These are the codes I am using for reference:

5555 - stairway
4444 - building exit
3333 - hallway node
2222 - elevator
1111 - null

If the 'ID' attribute of the floor junctions shapefile has a 3 integer number then it is assumed to be a room number, not a code. I am hoping that using this will allow Jianfei to differentiate in his program a little easier, and give him a way to connect and represent important connection points.

Here is a screengrab of the 3d network dataset created using ArcScene, I was going to post it yesterday but Blogger was acting up:

Information about PostgreSQL and PostGIS

PostgreSQL
PostgreSQL is a powerful, open source relational database system. It has more than 15 years of active development and a proven architecture that has earned it a strong reputation for reliability, data integrity, and correctness. It runs on all major operating systems, including Linux, UNIX (AIX, BSD, HP-UX, SGI IRIX, Mac OS X, Solaris, Tru64), and Windows. It is fully ACID compliant, has full support for foreign keys, joins, views, triggers, and stored procedures (in multiple languages). It includes most SQL92 and SQL99 data types, including INTEGER, NUMERIC, BOOLEAN, CHAR, VARCHAR, DATE, INTERVAL, and TIMESTAMP. It also supports storage of binary large objects, including pictures, sounds, or video. It has native programming interfaces for C/C++, Java, .Net, Perl, Python, Ruby, Tcl, ODBC, among others, and exceptional documentation.


PostGIS
PostGIS adds support for geographic objects to the PostgreSQL object-relational database. In effect, PostGIS "spatially enables" the PostgreSQL server, allowing it to be used as a backend spatial database for geographic information systems (GIS), much like ESRI's SDE or Oracle's Spatial extension. PostGIS follows the OpenGIS "Simple Features Specificationfor SQL" and has been certified as compliant with the "Types andFunctions" profile.

Conclusions
While I have not been able to test out this database technology, it seems very promising for our applications. I will hopefully have a working version of this open source technology and have a test database set up in it. Then I should be able to evaluate the performance of this system.

Network Dataset Progress and Website completion

Network Dataset Progress
Today I have focused mainly on updating the network datasets to include attributes and have nodes for each room. This process was rather time consuming, since I had to refer to a CAD drawing to determine room numbers then manually enter in the data into the database. I have so far finished two floors and hope to have all four finished by the end of this week.

Project Website Progress
I have finally finished the initial design for the project website. So far I have all of the pages set up with some content in them and a link to this blog's RSS feed. The only thing that needs to be done is some simple formatting, maybe some graphics, and finally the remainder of content that is available. I would provide a link, but as of now the site hasn't gone public yet.

Progress on digitizing Cameron Research Center

While I am still unable to fully convert the dBase files into SQL scripts automatically, I have decided to start expanding on the data I already have.

Since Cameron Research Center is much smaller, less complex, and has fewer rooms I have decided to start digitizing the building elements like I did for Woodward hall. I was able to create feature classer for each floor's rooms (polygons) and still need to digitize hallways and elevators.

I will then take the much simpler table from this building and begin exporting it into a Oracle database. I also need to start looking for ways to automate these processes.

dBase to SQL Issues

In order to export the geodatabase, I must first convert the files to dBase and read them in a third party program. Once I have the registered version I will be able to convert directly to SQL scrips or .CSV files.

The one problem that I am facing now is that the ObjectID field, which is a primary key, does not convert over to dBase format. It's of type "objectid", which, when displayed in DBF Manager only shows up as zeros. I will have to find a way to assign object ID's in a different type so they can be transferred over.

Future Goals, Database Info

Next week I plan on starting the Geocoding aspect of the project. The first thing I will do is consult with Dr. Paul Smith about possible methods. i will then add entries to the MAT in order to put points on the map where I need them. I will most likely have to manually do this. After this is done, I will have to explore more options in implementing the data in 3D.

I also want to export the database so that SQL calls can be made programmatically.

If I can get all of these things done I will have a good week....